Scene Challenge of the Week

So, I kept saying that I was going to take yesterday off… For taking the day off, I wound up doing a lot of work. You’d think I’d be better at the whole ‘taking time off’ thing, but apparently I kind of suck at it. Nonetheless, discussion boards needed grading and I’m the only one who does that. So, it’s time for another scene challenge! If you can’t remember the rules, then here you go: I provide you with specific rules for how to write a particular scene. Try to keep your scene under five hundred words, and try to keep it in the same tone as the introduction. If I give a line that is very dark and depressing, then I don’t want to see a scene about a drunken monkey in a tutu…it just doesn’t fit. If I do give you a line about a drunken monkey in a tutu, then you should probably try for a funny scene.

Your rules: You task this week is to write a scene of at least 300 words that is all one sentence. If you’ve been following the blog then you’ve seen this challenge before. Remember to make sure that the scene is grammatically correct, and that it flows well. Again, you might want to give it to a grammar nazi after you finish to make sure that your grammar is solid. Your cue: “There was a sword on the mantle…”

This is the challenging part. It is possible, but very difficult, to write a very, very long sentence that is still grammatically correct. I don’t suggest ever actually doing this in a story or novel. The sentence would certainly be very difficult to follow. However, being able to write a grammatically correct sentence of this length will help both your grammar and your ability to write a strong, flowing narrative. For an excellent example of this I suggest reading Steven Erikson’s Korbal Broach and Bauchelain. He has some sentences in here that are easily a page long, and they are beautiful. Almost more poetry than prose.